‘Smallville’: A Peek at the Final Season at Comic-Con

At the “Smallville” panel at Comic-Con on Sunday, fans got a sneak peek at the coming 10th and final season of the show, which will begin airing in September on the CW Fridays.

The show will reach its 200th episode this year, making it the longest-running sci-fi series on television. The exclusive footage from the coming season included a glimpse of the new, traditional blue-and-red Superman suit, which will replace the black and silver uniform that actor and director Tom Welling has worn in past seasons as Clark Kent. “I make the new suit look fantastic,” said Welling with a grin.

Cast members and show producers at the panel included Erica Durance (Lois Lane) and John Schneider (John Kent). Schneider, who plays Superman’s father on the TV series, made a surprise appearance several minutes into the session. When he realized he didn’t have a name card at his seat, he took his driver’s license out of his wallet and propped it up in front of him. “That’s my superhero haircut,” he joked, as cameras zoomed in on the license. “It’s also your address,” Welling reminded him. Schneider’s jaw dropped open and he removed the license. “I don’t live there anymore!” he fibbed, to laughter. Then, in resignation, he added, “So I guess I’ll be seeing you all later.”

During the Q & A session, when a man began telling Welling that his daughter’s 18th birthday was that day, tech staff cut off his voice, presumably because he was going to make a personal request of a member of the panel — a big no-no at Comic-Con. Schneider insisted that the man be allowed to finish. He said he knows the importance of a daughter’s 18th birthday. The man returned to the stage with his daughter, and Welling gave them his autograph.

When asked about training for the action sequences in the TV series, Durance said she often just “falls into” the correct positions because of her clumsiness. Cast members were also asked which character they would be, if they could play another actor’s role. “I just wish I were more like John Kent in real life,” Schneider said. “He’s the best-written character I’ve had the absolute honor to be associated with.” Schneider also informed fans that he has auditioned for a role as an ex pro-golfer alcoholic named Ronnie Barnes on the Spike TV show “The Back Nine,” and that the role is the complete opposite of his part on “Smallville.” Welling interrupted, “Going back to what you said about being more like John Kent – how does Mr. Barnes fit into that?” “Well, I’m really more like Ronnie Barnes,” Schneider admitted.

When asked about funniest scenes, Schneider said it was when Welling couldn’t say the word “macrame” no matter how much he tried. He ended up having to say “hanging potted plant.” When fans yelled that they wanted to hear Welling try to say “macarame” he leaned into his microphone, paused, and said: “Hanging potted plant.”

Welling said the funniest scene for him was when Lex Luthor (Michael Rosenbaum) died. He was clutching actor Rosenbaum in his arms and he refused to die because it was his last scene and he didn’t want to leave the set. “He wouldn’t shut up,” Welling said. His favorite scene, he said, was when he got to work with Christopher Reeve when he made a special appearance in Season 2.

Producer and writer Kelly Souders told fans to expect a lot from the last season — especially episode 4, the 200th one. “We’re trying to throw everything under the kitchen sink into this season,” she said, adding that the 200th episode will contain a lot of what’s on their list of things to do before the show ends. When asked why the show’s Clark Kent has worn a black-and-silver suit instead of the traditional suit in past episodes, Souders said: “Before Clark Kent really becomes Superman, he has to go through some trials and tribulations,” she said. Now that he has gone through them, he can really become Superman, she said. She added that the suit Welling will be wearing is the same one from the “Superman Returns” movie. Show producers also announced that the 9th season will be released on Blue-Ray and DVD in September.

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